The 2021 JUNO Awards nominations were annunced on March 9, and The Weeknd leads the pack with six nominations, while Jessie Reyez and JP Saxe follow closely with five each. The Weeknd’s and Reyez’s nominations include one each for Artist of the Year, and the latter earned two nods in the Music Video of the Year category as well. Saxe’s nominations nominated include Single, Breakthrough Artist, and Pop Album of the Year.
Among the nominees are:
Songwriter of the Year, presented by SOCAN
The Weeknd
Jessie Reyez
JP Saxe
Alessia Cara
Alanis Morissette
Classical Composition of the Year
Alexina Louie – Take The Dog Sled
Ana Sokolović – Commedia dell’arte
Anna Höstman – Harbour
Samy Moussa – Violin Concerto “Adrano”
Zosha Di Castri – Tachitipo
Francophone Recording of the Year
2Frères – À tous les vents
Klô Pelgag – Notre-Dame-des-Sept-Douleurs
Les Cowboys Fringants – Les antipodes
Louis-Jean Cormier – Quand la nuit tombe
Pierre Lapointe – Pour déjouer l’ennui
Indigenous Artist or Group of the Year
Burnstick – Kîyânaw
Crystal Shawanda – Church House Blues
Julian Taylor – The Ridge
Leela Gilday – North Star Calling
Terry Uyarak – Nunarjua Isulinginniani
Producer of the Year Nominees include Wondagurl, Murda Beatz, and triple-Grammy-nominee Kaytranada.
In the press conference after the announcements, a handful of nominees answered journalists’ questions. Jessie Reyez, whose five nominations resulted from the music of an album that she almost didn’t release because of the pandemic, said, “It was nerve-wracking at the time… I’m happy that we weren’t moving in fear. I’m also proud of my team, because we were walking into the unknown. We had no idea what was going to happen.”
Five-time nominee JP Saxe – whose co-write with Julia Michaels, “If the World Was Ending,” became a huge viral hit, and one of the anthems of the pandemic – said of his conversational writing style, “The only thing I’m interested in being is honest… It usually results directly from journaling, or if it’s a co-write, from a conversation.”
Budding pop superstar Tate McRae said, of her multiple nominations, “It’s a bit of a pinch-me moment… [In one case] I’m in the same category as The Weeknd, which is mind-blowing. I’m just very, very grateful.”
Asked about vulnerability in her songwriting, double-nominee Savannah Ré said, “Vulnerability is one of the pinnacles, and I think it’s imperative to go there… It’s really, really, really important.”
The 2021 JUNO Awards will take place May 16, with live performances streamed via CBC Music, and broadcast on CBC-TV, from the Budweiser Stage in Toronto – and possibly other venues across Canada, as the JUNOs try to support a live music community so damaged by the pandemic.
For a complete list of nominees, click here.